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"Neither American nor European City :-) " a Washington D.C. Travel Page by matcrazy1

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"Neither American nor European City :-) " a Washington D.C. Travel Page by matcrazy1

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matcrazy1    
Keep smiling, take it easy :-)


Real Name: Maciek (Matt)
Lives In: Tychy, PL
Member Since: Jan 12, 2000
VT Rank: 18

 

Page Views: 33,777            Last Visit to Washington D.C.: October, 2004      

Neither American nor European City :-)

by matcrazy1 - last update: Mar 1, 2007

My hellish and kiddy dream comes true :-)

THE WHITE HOUSE
I didn't know a lot about the capital of the USA before my visit in 2004. First of all, I wanted to see the two symbols of the only world's superpower: the Capitol and the White House. I have watched them thousands times on TV. It is interesting that TV wizzards (unfairly in all channels!) tend to enlarge the White House and reduce the Capitol building on my TV screen. Well, I knew also about the Arlington Cemetery and the Pentagon but technically they were located across the Potomac River, NOT in DC but in Arlington, Virginia. Well, it's an American speciality to divide one city into a few and never combine a few cities, located one by one, into one. They love freedom :-).

Living in Poland, on the wrong side of the Iron Curtain I, a teenager that time, paradoxically could watch Washington, DC more often than Moscow in so-called "Polish" TV. However I could only watch the sea of never ending slums (where to hell they had found them in DC ?) and hear all the time about unbelievable poverty, the world's highest crime rate, continous ethnic violence, thousands of homeless families, prostitutes, drug/alcohol addicted, street children etc. etc. From time to time I could watch peaceful demostrations against "imperialistic US government" brutally pacified by "rude and violent police". Washington was real hell and the worst place on our planet in my TV, radio and newspapers until 1989. This irritating and certainly false Soviet propaganda was spread daily through all mass media but somehow couldn't influence me. Right opposite, my young heart wanted to free from "the heaven" I was told to live in to '"the hell" of the USA and its "awful, imperialistic" capital. It was a dream that time! In 1980' I had never thought that this kiddy dream would ever come true during my life.



WE, UNITED VT-ERS :-)

VT-meeting :-)

My best memory from Washington, D.C. is time which I spent together with great VT-friends:
- Kathy from Dallas, Texas (Kodi01)
- Kristi from Chicago, Illinois (Dabs)
- Tania from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (skye820),
- Chris from Atlanta, Georgia (balfor)
- Kent from Fairfax, Virginia (Kentbein)
- Nat from Richmond, Virginia (b1bob).


First, it was very moving that these friends came from so far and wide to meet us... Then, they welcomed us on American soil like we were a king and queen or a rock star. We had great time... I'm speechless.. Let's meet again... Welcome to Poland.
On the picture (from the left):
- Kathy.
- Kent,
- Urszula (matcrazy0),
- Tania,
- Chris,
- Kristi.


Details on our Washington VT-meeting are put in my Nightlife tips and travelogues titled "We". Welcome :-)


THE US CAPITOL DOME

A week is a minimum, believe me!

Read my, the only one, Tourist Trap tip, please.

I've put up four pages on the US capital, this one and the following ones:
- Georgetown
- Cleveland Park
- United States Navy Memorial

Apart from that the highlights are included in my General Tips of which the following ones are described in details in my Things to Do tips:
1. United States Capitol
2. Supreme Court of the United States
3. White House
4. National Archives
5. National Museum of the American Indian
6. National Air and Space Museum
7. National Gallery of Art
8. Lincoln Memorial
9. Korean War Veterans Memorial
10. Vietnam Veterans Memorial

> Add to your Custom Travel Guide [What's This?]

Pros:"It's the Federal City! VT-ers I've met, countless free of charge tourist attractions, convenient public transportation"
Cons:"It's the Federal City! Burning in summer, freezing in winter!"
In A Nutshell:"Take a week or two off, keep smiling and go! DC awaits!"
matcrazy1's Washington D.C. Travel Tips

OverviewThings to Do
Tips: 169 - Photos: 791
 
Restaurants
Tips: 9 - Photos: 36
Hotels & Accommodations
Tips: 1 - Photos: 5
 
Nightlife
Tips: 8 - Photos: 40
Off The Beaten Path
Tips: 11 - Photos: 48
 
Tourist Traps
Tips: 1 - Photos: 2
Warnings Or Dangers
Tips: 8 - Photos: 39
 
Transportation
Tips: 23 - Photos: 96
Local Customs
Tips: 17 - Photos: 73
 
Packing Lists
Tips: 1 - Photos: 5
Shopping
Tips: 15 - Photos: 68
 
Sports Travel
Tips: 1 - Photos: 2
General Tips
Tips: 24 - Photos: 121

matcrazy1's Washington D.C. Travelogues
Title [Click to view]Travel YearPictures
Before you goOctober, 2004 8
We 1October, 2004 8
We 2October, 2004 8
We 3October, 2004 8
We 4October, 2004 8

Comments for matcrazy1 about Washington D.C.
counsel14 Thu Oct 1, 2009 03:30 UTC
 Matt, I LOVED you washington DC tips. I grew up a couple of miles south of here and love the city. Hope you can come back soon. Susan
Pawtuxet Wed Aug 5, 2009 13:24 UTC
 Matt...back to your DC page again. Glad I broke the rule and returned to Poland... and met you again. Hope you return to DC one day to continue exploring that fabulous city. It's worth a dozen trips.
icunme Mon Jul 20, 2009 08:25 UTC
 Hi Matt - came to see Poland and am lured back to a nostalgic tour of D.C. w/you. Will always return....... Ciao, Carol
irisha Sun Jun 14, 2009 16:36 UTC
 thanks for this extensive information on D.C.! Helped me remember some of the things I saw there back in 2006 and even learn new stuff about the city :) carry on the amazing work :)
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